


The Ties That Bind Us

by Gloriana_Chimera



Category: The Mummy (1999), The Mummy Returns (2001), The Mummy Series
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon-Typical Violence, F/M, Freeform whoops we woke up poly, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Implied/Referenced Suicide, M/M, Panic Attacks, Past Rape/Non-con, Trauma
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2021-02-03
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:40:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 9
Words: 16,485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28394772
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gloriana_Chimera/pseuds/Gloriana_Chimera
Summary: Their third encounter with Imhotep is the hardest to recover from.When the dust settles, how do you heal?
Relationships: Ardeth Bay/Evy Carnahan O'Connell, Ardeth Bay/Evy Carnahan O'Connell/Rick O'Connell, Ardeth Bay/Rick O'Connell, Evy Carnahan O'Connell/Rick O'Connell, Imhotep/Evy Carnahan O'Connell
Comments: 2
Kudos: 14





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey all. This fic intentionally picks up in the middle, the story will be fleshed out in subsequent chapters. 
> 
> There's also a whole lotta ish in this fic. I'm trying keeping it as time period compliant as I can, but it's an AU and I do what I want.

Rick woke up shivering in one of the high backed chairs in his and Evie's room. The fire died down while he dozed, and the winter chill had crept in. 

He stretched, wincing as several joints cracked and realigned. He was getting entirely too old to be falling asleep in chairs. Hell, he'd been too old for a while. 

After stoking the fire he checked on Evie's still form. Nothing had changed. It had been over a week since...since… He couldn't think about it or the rage and grief would overwhelm him. 

He wanted to go find Ardeth. Talk the problem out over bad coffee and a fire. But he couldn't, because he couldn't even look at the man he considered closer than blood without wanting to beat the hell out of him. He knew it wasn't Ardeth's fault, the man would never have...have raped Evie. Ever. If he wasn't under the control of Imhotep. 

But that was the problem. He had been under Imhotep's control and all Rick could see was him on top of Evie, and then her stop moving...and he couldn't even breath when he thought about it. 

Really, Rick realized with a start, Ardeth had been raped just the same as Evie. He scrubbed his hands over his face. He hadn't consented to anything that happened either. 

He had been avoiding Ardeth since they got back to England because he was afraid he would take his anger out on his friend, and that would be cruel. Rick was a lot of things, but cruel wasn't one of them. Except he unintentionally had been. Ardeth was suffering alone, and so was he.

They would have to talk in the morning. Get this elephant out of the room. He sighed and pressed a kiss to her forehead. He wished, he prayed, he begged any deity he could think of for her to wake up. Move, blink, swallow, anything. But she just laid there unnaturally still. Her heart and lungs still working, but somehow seeming to be less and less every hour. He had the insane thought she might just vanish eventually. 

And he couldn't do a damned thing about it. She wasn't sick. There wasn't anything obviously wrong. No injuries. It was like her body was just...there without her. 

He rubbed his eyes and headed out to the sitting room to add more wood to the fire out there. The boiler had shit the bed 2 weeks ago and he hadn't had a chance to fix it. It was a small favor there was a lot of fire wood. 

The rare snowstorm finally stopped at least . It was that cold, wet, heavy snow that would turn into masses of ice soon. He'd have to add checking the roof and knocking down icicles to his list of things to do. 

He stood at the window wanting desperately to go curl up next to Evie, but knew he would only feel worse if he did. She was so unnervingly still that he couldn't rest near her like that. 

He squinted out into the darkness. There was a large something in the yard that shouldn't be there. He went to the French doors and opened one for a better look, one hand on the gun he kept by the entrance. 

Then he was running through the snow in his bare feet. "Ardeth!"

He slid to a stop next to the kneeling man. He didn't respond. Rick grabbed his shoulders, turning him so he could see his face. His eyelashes were frozen shut, lips blue, and his skin looked terrifyingly pale for the normally dark complexioned man. 

He hefted his cold body over his shoulder and hurried into the house. 

He worked quickly once inside. After setting his friend down near the fire he collected as many blankets as he could carry. Thank God Evie was always cold. In the light of the fire Ardeth looked dead and Rick was close to losing what little grip on his sanity he still had. If he lost Ardeth and Evie he wasn't sure he would survive. He would try for Alex. He really would. He just didn't have high hopes for success. 

Once he got the soaked clothes off Ardeth he stripped down himself, dragged him onto the blankets spread in front of the fire, laid down behind him and pulled the rest of the blankets over them. 

Rick wrapped himself around Ardeth, holding him as tight as he could, holding his hands, trying to warm them with his own. 

For several agonizing minutes Rick couldn't tell if Ardeth was breathing. And he kept repeating one of the few things his dad had taught him before running off "Not dead till they're warm and dead" 

Finally he felt the shallow rise and fall his chest, and could feel a pulse. 

He took a shuddering breath, and the tears had been fighting for days started leaking from his eyes. "You can't die Ardeth. What the fuck were you thinking sitting out there in the fucking cold? I will never forgive you if you die. You're one of three people in this world that I love. Please wake up. Please. I'm so sorry. I'm sorry I've ignored you. I'll do anything. Just please wake up. I'm sorry I failed you. Both of you. I couldn't keep either one of you safe. Please…" his voice trailed off, the words hurting too much. 

After what felt like an eternity Ardeth started shivering in his arms and struggling ineffectually. 

He tightened his hold "Ardeth. Ardeth! It's ok. It's Rick. I've got you. I've got you. You're ok. You're safe" 

Finally he stopped fighting and blinked his eyes open groggily. "What…"

"You were outside in the ice and snow for god knows how long and I thought you were dead" He pressed his face against Ardeth's shoulder, taking an unsteady breath "What the fuck were you thinking?"

His voice was weak, but audible even through his chattering teeth "I was trying to understand. How. How she did it."

"How she did what?" 

Ardeth didn't answer. 

"Ardeth! How she did what?!?"

"How she...went still."

He still had no idea what Ardeth was talking about. "Tell me about it"

Ardeth shook his head, his shivering getting worse. 

Rick sighed and kissed the top of his head. "Okay, okay. Fine, just don't ever pull a bullshit stunt like this again. You are the only man I trust, the only person outside of Evie and Alex I love. I'm sorry I haven't shown it since we got back. It wasn't your fault. What Imhotep made you do. It wasn't your fault. And I'm sorry I couldn't protect you"

Ardeth jerked in shock "Wh-wh-what? You couldn't have done a-a-anything. I failed her. I couldn't protect her. I walked right into his trap and she's the one that suffered. Y-y-you can't even be in the same room with me. I don't deserve your trust or your friendship" 

Rick growled "Bullshit. He knew how to bait his trap and we both fell into it. I shouldn't have been ignoring you. I was trying to keep from taking out my anger on you, because you don't deserve it. It's not going to be ok overnight. But from not on I'm going to be right here with you while we get through this. I need you. She needs you. Please"

Ardeth grabbed Rick's hands and pulled his arms tighter around him. His voice started haltingly, stuttering occasionally from the shivering "He-he hurt her. Before I even got there he had hurt her. Badly. He dropped her in front of me and described in detail all of the dehumanizing things he had done to her."

He went silent for long enough Rick was about to shake him to make sure he was still conscious. "He offered me a choice. If I willingly put on his collar, he would leave her alone. So I did. I knew he wasn't going to keep his word. But if there was even the slightest chance…"

Rick didn't want to ask. Didn't want to hear what had been done to her in front of him. 

"He kept hurting her?"

Both men were crying at this point. 

"Yes, I can't...he...he...he brutalized her. He didn't shackle me. Or have his guards restrain me. He just told me to stand still. And I had to obey. I just… stood there...while he…" 

Sobs started wracking Ardeth's body as the twisted tale became clearer. "When he was done with her for the day he left her in my cell, on the floor, and ordered me not to touch her, or respond at all if she tried to talk to me" 

Rick clenched his eyes shut against the tears that were already falling in a vain attempt to stop them. His heart was shattering all over again. He couldn't even imagine having to see her like that and be unable to say or do anything. "It's not your fault. There was nothing you could have done differently. I would have done the same thing"

Once they had both reclaimed a semblance of control Ardeth continued quietly "The second day he came in and announced it was my turn. She spit on him and shouted something I couldn't quite understand. But whatever it was enraged him. He forced her to kneel on a block of marble and told her I was safe as long as she didn't move. And she didn't until..."

He went silent again, both of them struggling with the Implications. 

Rick finished for him "Until he made you force yourself on her in front of me" his voice broke.

When his breathing finally steadied Rick whispered in his ear roughly "And then she kicked his ass. And we are going to find a way to get her back. Together. Do you hear me? Together. No more of this punishing yourself bullshit. We're going to get her back and get through this. I'm not going anywhere. I won't freeze you out anymore. I love you Ardeth, and we are not going to go through this alone anymore"

At first he didn't think Ardeth would respond. Then he just nodded, pressed back against Rick's chest tighter and whispered "I love you too. And Evie"

Eventually they both drifted off to sleep in front of the crackling fire. 

Dawn was just starting to break when something woke Rick up. He was on his back, tangled up in what felt like a dozen blankets...and Ardeth. 

He shifted uncomfortably, and opened his eyes with a groan that ended up an exclamation "EVIE!" 

She was crouched down near his head, looking down at him quizzically "Rick. Why are you and Ardeth sleeping on the floor?"

"I...uhh… " he looked over at Ardeth who was staring at Evie with something like heartbreak on his face. He tightened his arm around him and looked back up at Evie "It was cold"

Evie raised her eyebrows for a moment and then shrugged "Oh, okay". Ardeth was staring at him like he was crazy and tried to pull away. He tightened his arm again for a moment and then loosened his grasp enough that the other man could disentangle himself if that's what he wanted. He really didn't want to give Ardeth the impression he was ashamed to wake up with him like this.

He looked back at Evie, a grin brightening his face. Just then her stomach growled and he laughed softly. "Want me to get up and make some breakfast?"

She nodded "Yes please!" and leaned down to kiss his forehead. Rick didn't miss that she reached over to squeeze Ardeth's hand on his chest. Something uncoiled inside of him, not realizing he had been worried how she would react to finding him mostly naked with Ardeth 

He wasn't even remotely sure what happened, but he wasn't going to argue with God, or fate, or destiny, or who/whatever let her wake up "Any chance you brought out my robe?" 

She nodded and handed it to him "Do you want me to grab you one Ardeth?"

His voice caught when he answered her "That..that would be appreciated. Thank you"

She stood and walked off in towards their room. 

Rick just laid there blinking for a moment and then looked to Ardeth, who was staring after Evie. "You know you're going to have to move if you want breakfast…"

His eyes slowly left the hallway Evie had gone down and looked into Rick's face. He swallowed and whispered roughly "Not yet...please."

Rick nodded and wrapped his other arm around him in a bear hug. 

A few minutes later Evie set a robe on the chair near them "I think I may take a shower while you start breakfast."

Rick groaned "The boiler shit the bed before…" he didn't finish the thought, not wanting to break the spell of them pretending everything was normal "The boiler shit the bed and I haven't fixed it yet."

She huffed and crossed her arms over her chest, not ready to talk about the past couple of weeks either "Language Mr. O'Connel." She turned smartly on her heal and stalked off towards the kitchen "I'll just boil some water and have a nice bath then. You boys take your time with breakfast."

He closed his eyes and gripped Ardeth tighter, trying to keep from jumping up and running after her. The struggle made it hard to breath and he choked out a sob before managing a few shaky breaths. 

For his part, Ardeth had pressed his face against Rick's shoulder and hadn't moved since she had come in the room with the robe. He started shaking sometime during the discussion about the boiler and Rick rubbed his back with broad strokes of his palm. 

"It's ok. She's safe. You're safe. I'm safe. Alex is safe. In Paris with Jonathan, but safe."

Ardeth just gripped him tighter, his knuckles white while he struggled to not completely break down. 

"Ok, it's ok. We have a little bit while she boils water, and at least a half hour for the bath and getting dressed."

All he got was a nod and figured that was good enough. 

They laid together like that until Rick finally heard Evie close the door to their bedroom. He gave Ardeth's shoulder a squeeze and disentangled himself. "Come on, I'll get coffee going while you get dressed"

"Your coffee is horrible" 

"Then you'd better get dressed fast and get to it before I do"

Rick really wasn't in the mood for banter. He wanted to drag both of them into the bedroom, lock the door, and just sleep for a week with them both in bed with him so he knew they were safe. But it seemed Evie wanted to pretend it was just another Sunday and Rick would play along. For now. 

He was measuring out the grounds when Ardeth came up behind him and plucked the container from his hands. “No. I want to still be able to taste breakfast.”

“My coffee isn’t THAT bad”

“I couldn’t tell the difference between your coffee and used motor oil the last time I let you make it.”

“Why were you drinking motor oil?”

Ardeth sighed and motioned towards the door with the can “Go check on your wife. I will make the coffee”

Rick hesitated “”Ardeth…”

“I promise not to wander outside and almost die. “

"If you make me come drag your ass inside out of the snow in my bare feet ever again I am going to kick your ass, not spend the night wrapped up in blankets with you."

”Noted. Now go check on her please." 

He grabbed Ardeth's shoulder and turned him so they were facing one another and looked at him intently. His words serious “Hey, look at me” He waited until Ardeth met his eyes “If you start feeling not ok, you come get me? Yes?”  
“My friend, I will be fine, last night was a…” Rick shook him a little “Shut up. Promise me Ardeth. Promise me you will come get me”

Ardeth paused a moment, clearly thinking of continuing to argue and then nodded. “I promise”

Rick looked in his eyes, seeming to be looking for some indication of whether or not Ardeth was telling the truth. Finally he nodded, apparently satisfied with what he saw “Good” and left Ardeth to his own devices with the coffee.

He knocked lightly on their bedroom door and when he didn’t get a reply slowly opened it. The door to their bathroom was closed and he could see the shadows of Evies feet as she moved around inside. He knocked on the door “Evie? Can I come in?”

He heard her muffled “yes” and went inside, closing the door behind him. She was standing at the vanity trying to get her hair to stay in a bun, her robe tied loosely at her waist. “Since when do you knock?”

Rick grabbed one of his scarves out of a cupboard and came up behind her moving her hands down to her sides gently “Since last week happened. Here, let me help” He deftly tied the scarf around her hair so it was wrapped up off her shoulders. 

She turned to face him , looking up to meet his eyes her hands resting on his chest lightly “Rick”

“Evelyn”

“Are you...Are you ok?”

“Am I ok? Evie, I’m not the one who went toe to toe with Imhotep and I was only in that godforsaken camp for a half a day. Don’t worry about me, I’m ok”  
She hit his shoulder lightly with her palm and practically growled at him “Don’t lie to me Mr. O’Connell, I saw you, I…” The anger in her voice faded to a whisper “I heard you”

Her hands were clenched in his robe and he slowly pulled her in against his chest until she was wrapped up in him, resting his cheek on the top of her head he gave her a squeeze. “Yes, but all of that is because you were being hurt. Ardeth was being hurt. And I couldn’t do anything.” He kissed her hair “I’m not so helpless here. We can work through what happened together. Just like we did the first time. And the second time.”

“And Ardeth?”

He took a deep breath, needing to know, but not wanting to ask how she felt about Ardeth and what Imhotep had forced him to do to her. He reigned in his anger so she wouldn’t hear it in his voice “Ardeth isn’t going anywhere until we work out his shit too.”

She nodded against his chest, barely able to hear the muffled “Good..thats good” She paused a moment and then “And language, Rick”

He rubbed his cheek against her hair grinning “Do you want me to wash your back?”

She shook her head and pulled away a little bit to look up at him “No, I just...I just want to sit in the bath and let the water hold me together for a little bit.”

He kissed her forehead, letting her pull back, but caught her shoulders at the last second “Okay, I’m going to go work on breakfast, yell for me if you need anything.”

She huffed “Rick, I’ll be…”

“Evie! Just, promise me ok? I don’t care how stupid it seems. You will yell for me if you need help with anything”

She huffed at him again “Fine, I will yell if I so much as need a washcloth”

He kissed her forehead again “Thank you” and went back to the kitchen.

He and Ardeth worked in companionable silence for a while until Ardeth asked "Is she ok?" 

Rick glanced over at him and continued cutting the potatoes. "She will be." It wasn't much of an answer, but it was the best he could do. 

"Did she say anything about me being here? I don't want to make her uncomfortable"

"She's glad you're here. She asked about you and said verbatim "Good, thats good" when I said you were staying"

Ardeth didn't look convinced. 

"Look, let's just eat breakfast and then we can hash out the specifics. What I said earlier still stands. You're staying, and we're going to work through what happened together. End of story." He emphasized the last part with a flick of his knife. 

Ardeth smiled faintly and exhaled "When you put it that way, it seems I don't have much of a choice."

"I won't actually force you to stay. But I want you to. Evie wants you to. You need support to work through being hijacked by Imhotep just as much as she does."

"So do you."

"All I need is to know the both of you are safe."

He looked unconvinced. 

"Ardeth, I've done this a few times." He handed him a cutting board, some potatoes, and onions "Can you cut these up?"

He took the pile, got a knife out of the kitchen drawer and got to work. 

Rick kept talking while he worked on the rest of the omelette fixings. "During the war and with the legion I went looking for a good time to try and cover up, or over write, or whatever all the bad shit that happened. Obviously, that didn't work out too well" He reached up to idly rub his hand across his neck. Sometimes, if he was having a bad night he could still feel the noose "Since getting blackout drunk and crawling into whatever bed I could find wasn't an option after Hamunaptra I had to figure out something else."

He started cracking the eggs into a bowl to whisk up. "Did I ever tell you why Evie and I got married so soon after we got back?" It had taken them all of 2 weeks, and most of that was waiting for paperwork. 

"No, you have not."

"I couldn't sleep." The corners of his mouth turned up just a little as he remembered "It was a couple of days after we got back. Every time I fell asleep I had nightmares that I woke up alone with a note next to the bed saying 'Went back to England. Take care of yourself.' In the dream I would wake up over and over and over, think "Thank god it was a dream" and then find the note. Even when I was awake for real I never quite trusted I wasn't going to find that note." 

He took the diced potatoes from Ardeth and added them to a pan with some butter and seasoning. "I tried to deal with it on my own, but Evie figured out something was wrong. We had a fight that rivaled the one we had when I was trying to convince her to run when I finally told her why I wasn't sleeping. Only this time she was the one to storm out. I was a mess. Bawled like a child because I thought I had fucked up so badly she actually was leaving me."

Ardeth had put down his knife and was staring at him incredulously "She went willingly with the creature to save your life..."

"Technically that was to save everybody." He shrugged "Either way, I'm not saying it was rational or made any kind of sense, but that's where my head was stuck. I would have gone after her, but I had a full blown panic attack and couldn't." 

He flipped the potatoes in the pan with a flick of his wrist "I was borderline catatonic and didn't register anything until she came back a few hours later. She sat on the floor and talked to me until I was mostly coherent again. Then she ran me a bath, made me hot chocolate, and we talked while I soaked." 

He took the onions from Ardeth and added them to the potatoes along with some garlic. "I was deliriously exhausted, so I didn't quite understand what she meant when she handed me the ring, showed me the matching one on her left ring finger and told me 'I intend to keep you around for a very long time Mr. O'Connell.'" 

He moved the potatoes off the heat and started working on the omelettes. He did his best impression of Evie for the next bit "MR. O'Connell, I am not leaving you. Not now. Not ever. So put on the ring as a reminder of that, and we can get married as soon as we get the paperwork done."

He cleared his throat and continued normally "But, the point is. I needed to know she wasn't going to leave me once we were back in civilization. And as much as her storming out triggered a panic attack, she figured out how to show me in a concrete way she wasn't going to leave and that particular nightmare rarely came around again." 

"And we decided no more storming out without explicitly stating it was only to cool off." Evie added from the doorway to the kitchen. She had changed into different of pajamas. Soft pants and a loose button up shirt underneath her heavy flannel robe. 

She pulled plates and glasses out of the cupboard and set them out on the small circular kitchen table. The cutlery followed while Rick filled the plates with their breakfast. 

Rick took a moment to sip his coffee and watch Evie and Ardeth while they got settled at the table. Evie was half trying to pretend everything was normal, half trying to process. He knew by now she would start the conversation when she was ready. Until then, he would fuss over her until she threw something at him. Usually it was a pillow, but that one time he had tried to shave her legs for her when she was pregnant with Alex it was a bar of soap. 

He moved over to join them idly contemplating how much fussing it would take to get Ardeth to throw something at him.


	2. Like a Ton of Bricks.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Evie remembers her ordeal in the desert.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey all, fair warning this has a pretty graphic description of a panic attack.

Evie shuffled into the sitting room, tightening her robe around her shoulders. She was overwhelmingly grateful neither Rick or Ardeth tried to press her to talk about what had happened in the desert. Mostly because she couldn't quite recollect the past week or so. It felt like the morning after having a bad nightmare she couldn't remember when she woke up. 

She shook her head to try and dispel the feeling of doom. It wouldn't do any good to lose the plot before she even knew what it was. 

Blankets and pillows. That's what always helped. Soft places and warm things. She puttered around the room building what Rick had dubbed her 'nest' on a large settee with a rounded back. She spread blankets on it, curled up in the middle and wrapped them around herself. A blanket pulled up to draft-proof the front and only her face was visible. She could read or hold a cup, it was just under the blanket. Honestly, Rick was right, it really was quite nest-like. 

She didn't feel like reading today, but Rick would probably make hot chocolate soon. He coped with stress by coddling her. 

Their second fight after returning to Cairo was because he had started practically waiting on her hand and foot. At first she thought it was sweet, not unlike when he gave her the 'borrowed' tool kit. 

However, after a day of over the top attention she lost her temper and asked him if he thought she was some fragile doll. She was quite capable of taking care of herself thank you very much. When he denied thinking she was incapable she had angrily demanded to know why he was treating her like an invalid. 

Their disagreement escalated until he knelt in front of her and...not begged, but asked earnestly for her to let him take care of her. He couldn't shake the feeling he had failed her by not being able to protect her at Fort Brydon or in the streets of Cairo. 

After going back and forth for at least a quarter hour they finally settled on a compromise that if she would let him pamper her within reason he would teach her to shoot and fight for real. He seemed pleased with the arrangement even though she was pretty sure she had gotten the better end of the deal. Being able to defend herself had really helped her confidence. 

Her smile was sad as she stared into the fire, remembering those first few tumultuous months together. She wished she could muster up even an ounce of that fire right now. The deep numb feeling in her chest was almost more distressing than the bits and pieces of memories that had slowly started to come back to her.

Ardeth came in the room and took one of the chairs, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees looking into the fireplace. He had that same 'thousand yard stare' Rick sometimes got when certain memories were too close. 

Looking at him made everything hurt more and she didn't know why. The flashes she had gotten were mostly of pain. Humiliation. Ardeth; his presence giving her something to focus on to stay sane. 

She had discovered silver raised scars on her body while she was getting ready for her bath. The sight of them in the mirror had made her vomit. 

She didn't remember how she got them, or how the wounds had healed so fast. Given how many of them there were and where they were located, she wasn't particularly sure she wanted to remember. But her unease at not knowing was stronger. 

"Ardeth…" his head snapped up to look at her. The pain in his eyes lancing through her heart. "What...what happened?"

He opened his mouth to say something, closed it and looked back at the fire, his jaw clenched so tightly she could see the muscles in his face standing out. His hands curled into fists, his knuckles going white. 

She whispered "Was it that bad?"

He nodded jerkily, not looking at her "Yes."

"What did he do to you?"

He looked at her incredulously "To me?!" His voice cracked "Nothing."

She scowled at him, her frustration leaving a queasy feeling in her stomach. Breakfast may not have been one of her brightest ideas. 

"Even if I wasn't there, I wouldn't believe you." 

Just then Rick walked in with three cups of hot chocolate, gave one to Ardeth, set hers on the end table near the settee and sat on the couch, blowing on his drink and taking a sip. 

She smiled the familiar scents washing over her. The chocolate. The nutmeg. The...clove. It felt like there was some important memory associated with the smell of cloves. She focused trying to remember but couldn't. 

She picked her mug up and pulled it into her blanket nest, the steam warming her face as she inhaled deeply. 

And like a damn breaking, everything that happened flooded her mind. Being kidnapped from their house in Cairo. The shockingly short drive tied in the back of a jeep. Imhotep. The camp at ruins she didn't recognize. Screaming. 

She felt like her heart was going to stop with the intensity of the memories. Her body had gone still, squeezing the mug between her hands until they hurt. Electric shocks raced through her joints. She had to say something. Rick would help. But this wasn't normal. She wanted to ask for help. To make the hot chocolate go away. The once soothing drink now reflecting her horror back at her. She tried to say something again, but the words got stuck in her throat, burning with the need to be said. 

She clenched her eyes shut. Tears streaming down her cheeks as she sucked in silent gasps. They couldn't see her. The blankets were up over her head like a cowl. 

A rushing sound filled her ears. Please notice. Help. Make this stop. 

She couldn't think. Stop. Stop. Stop. Stop. She could almost feel every lash, every bruise, every time Imhotep had been inside of her. Enough. Please. Enough. Stop. The words raced through her head and just when she was sure she wasn't going to survive this time. In a moment of desperate clarity she started tapping her nails against the mug. Tap tap. Tap tap. Tap tap. Tap tap. The despair flooded back, more painful for having the moment of hope. Tap tap. Tap tap. Tap tap. She needed help. Please. Enough. Please notice. Rick. Ardeth. Please. Tap tap. Tap tap. Tap tap. Tap tap. 

And then Rick was on one knee in front of her. "Evie?" 

She stared at him, her eyes bright with terrir and too wide. Tap tap. Tap tap. The mug please the mug. 

She tried to say it, but couldn't get anything past that infernal catch. She couldn't smell anything else but the clove.

Tap tap. Tap tap. He was asking her questions. Focus. "Evie, what's wrong"

She shook her head. She had lost the words. Her throat was on fire. She couldn't even swallow. She wanted to. Yell. Cry. Scream. Anything. Tap tap. Tap tap. Tap tap.

He pried the mug from her hands. YES! And set it on the table beside her. No...she could still smell it. How was it getting stronger. She started shaking. There was nothing left to tap on. She needed. She needed….

Ardeth was next to Rick "The hot chocolate. It smells...not unlike the incense the creature used."

Rick looked like someone smacked him across the face. "Fuck, I'm sorry." He picked the mug up, collected the other two, and took them to the kitchen. 

The smell didn't leave. 

She thought for a fleeting moment to scold him for swearing. 'Language Mr. O'Connel'. Always. 1000 times she'd said it. But she couldn't make the words come. Did she even exist without words? Words were books and she is a librarian. Where were her words. 

She reached out and grabbed Ardeth's hand. She had to move. It had to stop. 

He knelt where Rick had been earlier, holding her hands. She couldn't breath. Her lungs wouldn't work. Why wouldn't her lungs work. It was supposed to be automatic. She wasn't supposed to have to think about breathing. Black started creeping through her field of vision. She was going to die. He was going to kill her from across the world. 

She wasn't on the chair anymore. She was in Ardeth's arms, blankets and all. Outside Crisp morning air. Outside. The smell was gone. Outside. Oh god. Safe. She sucked in a deep breath and buried her face against Ardeth's shoulder sobbing and gasping for air. Safe she was safe. Ardeth was safe. Rick was safe. Right? Where was Rick? The panic crashed back through her like a tidal wave of glass. It hurt. 

They weren't standing anymore. Blankets appeared around Ardeth's shoulders. A second set of arms wrapped around both of them. Warm. Familiar voices. Safe. Rick's voice. Telling her she was safe. Rubbing her back through the blankets. He was safe. She loved him so much. And he was safe. Good. Ardeth's voice in her other ear. Speaking Arabic, but she didn't have the energy to translate what he was saying in her head. She loved him too. She didn't even have the energy to process much of what Rick was saying. Their voices were enough to ground her and crush of memories started receding. 

She slowly relaxed against Ardeth's chest and worked her arms free of the blankets to wrap around him. One of her hands found Rick's and clung to him too. They were both safe. She was safe, and there was no reason to believe that state of being would change any time soon. 

Eventually her tears slowed and she sniffled. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to…"

Ardeth held her tighter and whispered roughly "There is nothing to be sorry for. I am just glad you managed to signal you were in trouble."

It was Rick who held them tighter this time. "I'm sorry it took me so long to figure it out. I thought you were just nervous tapping at first." 

He looked at Ardeth over her head "It would have taken me forever to figure out the damned hot coco was the issue. Thank you."

Evie sniffled "Language Mr. O'Connel." 

Rick sank against her, seeming boneless for a second. 

Ardeth started shaking and a moment later chuckled out loud. 

Rick snickered. 

Evie squeak giggled and then they were all laughing so hard they slid off the bench into a pile of blankets and tangle of bodies. 

Eventually Rick shivered and kissed both of their temples. "It's too cold for these old bones. I'm going to go make sure the house is aired out, then I need a nap."

Ardeth nodded in agreement. "I'll stay out here with Evie"

She closed her eyes and burrowed closer to Ardeth, focusing on just breathing and existing. Ardeth would keep her safe. Rick would make everything ok. She was safe. 

Within a few minutes she beat both of them to the nap portion of the plan.


	3. Off the path.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> No recovery goes smoothly. Even when magic and soulmates are involved. Ardeth finds Evelyn drunk and secrets are revealed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is going up before Beta. So things may change. I'll explain any edits here in the notes. 
> 
> Please be warned this chapter also deals with suicide.

Ardeth stared at the flowing cursive in front of him. The ancient poetry had once been how he reminded himself of the beauty in the world.

When he was a young man he had a hard time trying to maintain his humanity while guarding Hamunaptra. His sacred duty meant watching men die by the hands of others, himself, and the desert. It weighed on his heart. He was supposed to be a warrior for God and protector of man, but so much of what he did was witness the death of men. 

He had, still did, believe in his destiny. However, that conviction didn't keep the images of sand and blood from his mind. The screams of the dying. Bodies collapsing in the heat of the desert. 

He had become a ghost of his former self. Even though he thought he had done an acceptable job of hiding what felt like the loss of his soul, an older warrior noticed. He never said anything, just put the small book of poems in his hands, clapped him on the shoulder, and walked back into the darkness. 

He read by fire until late into the night, and every night afterwards. It was a subtle change, but eventually he realized he could better unshoulder the burden when he returned home. The desert stayed in the desert, and home stayed at home. The poetry was the bridge that let him keep both sides of his life balanced. 

He had been surprised, but thankful to find Evelyn had a copy of the work in her library. 

The problem was the familiar words seemed to have lost their power. Before, they had been a painting with words, but now they were just ink and paper. 

The day Evie woke up he'd allowed himself to begin hoping things were on their way to returning to normal. 

But the next day she had withdrawn from both of them. She still slept in the bed with them, but avoided any other physical contact. It had been Rick's only request; for all three of them to share their monstrosity of a bed so he would know where they were. He usually fell asleep with a hand on Evie, and his leg touching Ardeth's. 

Evie's withdrawal into herself hit Rick the hardest. As far as Ardeth could tell, there was a general flow to how the two of them recovered once they were home safe, but Evie was following a different path this time. Rick had confided in him that he didn't know what to do, and was scared she wouldn't step back from the edge, and he didn't know how to help her. 

He closed the book and set it on the end table beside him. He should try to talk to her. Rick was running errands for groceries and other necessities; maybe she'd be more willing to talk to him alone since he already knew the extent of what the creature had done to her. 

But he couldn't make himself move. If he was being completely honest with himself, he was afraid. Afraid he was the cause of her withdrawal. Afraid she would make him leave. Afraid she blamed him after all. Afraid she hated him, and that Rick would come to hate him as well. 

When had he become a coward?

The thought spurred him to action. Fear was a poor excuse for inaction. 

It took him longer to find her than was comfortable, he could track anyone through the desert, but finding a single woman in the giant manor was a challenge. 

In the end he found her in Jonathan's wing of the stately manor. They generally left it closed unless he was staying with them, so it was the last place he thought to check. 

She was sitting on the floor in a shaft of sunlight with her shirt pooled on the floor behind her. He froze, her back was criss crossed and pocked with faded silvery scars. It looked as though they'd been healed for years even though they were only weeks old. 

All he could hear was his heart pounding in his ears and time slowed to a crawl. There were more than he remembered. 

The momentary spell was broken when she lifted a dark bottle to her lips and took several swallows, grimacing. He crossed the room and sat next to her, keeping his eyes firmly focused on the window in front of them. 

She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and looked up at him, her eyes too bright and a little glassy. "Hi." She hiccupped and tipped the bottle to her lips again. 

"Evelyn." He didn't know what else to say, so he just sat silently with her until she spoke again. 

"I thought if I could look at them. I could show him."

"The scars?"

She nodded and held up her arm, wrist near her face and then put it down so fast she knocked the bottle of booze over. She picked it up, stared at it intently "S'okay. Its almost empty." and took another swig. 

He quietly moved the bottle out of her reach when she set it down. "Was it full when you started drinking?" If she drank almost an entire bottle of whiskey it was going to be a very long day. 

She shook her head hard enough that her hair went flying and she started to list to the side. Ardeth grabbed her shoulder and pulled her back upright, putting his arm around her to keep her upright

"Jonathan's bottles are never full." She hiccupped. "Now I know why."

"Why is that?"

"Because I drank half this bottle and I still can't look at them." She looked around for it, her brow knitted in confusion for a moment. "And I can't show Rick."

"Why can't you show him?"

"Because then he would know." She said sadly. "And if he knew, he wouldn't love me anymore." 

"Evelyn, trust me when I say there isn't anything you are capable of doing that would cause him to stop loving you. He's already seen the scars. He knows they're there and he doesn't care about them. All he wants is you."

"And you." 

He blinked, momentarily shocked. But he was NOT having that discussion with her right now, so he just ignored it. 

"Can you show me?"

"But then you would know too."

"I already know, Evelyn. I was there. You didn't do anything wrong. None of those scars are your fault. Rick knows that. I know that."

She whispered so softly he wasn't sure he heard right "Some of them are." 

"Nothing the creature did is your fault. Nothing you said or did could make any of it your fault. You survived, that's what matters."

"You don't understand." 

"Then tell me, you don't need to do this alone. I was there too, I already understand."

She pulled out of his grasp and struggled ineffectually to get to her feet for a moment before giving up and just staying on the ground.

He touched her shoulder and she pulled away like she'd been burned and shouted "NO YOU DON'T. YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND." she turned to him, tears streaming down her face "It wasn't just him."

"Who else hurt you?" His voice was low and rough. The only other answer was him. He knew he'd have to face the consequences of what he'd done, but he still didn't think he could survive hearing her name him as a cause of her pain. 

"Me" she whispered, her eyes drifting closed. "Some of them are from me."

He struggled for a moment. That wasn't an answer he'd been prepared for. The implications terrified him. He didn't want to ask. "Evelyn, which ones? Please show me."

She kept her eyes shut, still crying silently, but held out her arms, palms up. 

In his years as a warrior in the desert, he'd gotten familiar with different types of wounds and scars. Either because he himself was injured, or when he helped care for the injured after a battle. 

He took her wrists in his hands gently and studied the marks on her skin. Trying to figure out what she was trying to say. He cataloged them, ruthlessly stomping down on his own feelings about her torture, burns, split skin, a spot that looked like the skin had been removed, knife wounds…

A scar ran the length of each forearm. They were almost invisible compared to the raised silver scars everywhere else. The sudden realization left him breathless and feeling like he was going to vomit. 

He slid his hands up her arms, running his thumbs along the pale lines. "When?"

"Before they brought you." 

"Are you afraid Rick won't understand?"

She shook her head. 

"Then what is keeping you from telling him?" From telling both of them. 

She didn't answer for a long time. He just waited. Even if she didn't tell him, at least he had a starting point to try and help her. 

"He won't forgive me."

Well that was the most ridiculous thing he'd ever heard. If she hadn't sounded so broken and lost when she said it, he might have laughed at the absurdity. 

"That's just...it's...Rick loves you. He just wants you to heal. It won't matter to him." 

"How can you possibly know that?" She hiccupped. 

"Because it doesn't matter to me. He and I are not much different in that respect." 

"I didn't make you any promises. I promised him...I promised...I promised I wouldn't ever try to trade my life for his again." She pulled her arms out of his hands and hugged herself tightly "I overheard part of their plans to lure you and Rick to the camp. He needed both of you to accept his collar for whatever he had planned and the only leverage he had was me."

"You thought he would leave us alone if you were gone?" He couldn't say dead. Couldn't even think about that right now.

She nodded "It was the only thing I could think to do. And I was right. You took his collar for me. Rick would have done the same."

He didn't have a good reply for that. It was the truth, he'd barely given it a second thought when he accepted the deal to wear the creature's collar to protect her. Rick had admitted the same on the floor in front of the fire.

He sighed "Trying to save us doesn't require forgiveness. Even if I don't like how you went about it."

"Breaking a promise does."

"Then you have to ask for it." Arguing with her about the need for absolution wouldn't get him anywhere. But her actually talking to Rick just might. "You won't know what he'll say until you tell him."

She hugged her knees to her chest, looking lost. "I don't know how. He's the bravest man I've ever met. How can I tell him I gave up? That I didn't trust he would come for me? That I needed it to stop and I jumped on any excuse to end it. I didn't even try to think of another plan. As soon as I realized my death might save your loves it was…" her voice cracked "It was a relief. And I didn't waste any time. I just used a piece of broken pottery…" she trailed off. 

There was the real reason. Knowing did not help as much as he hoped it would. He was still at a loss for what to say, or do. "Evelyn, look at me." Her eyes snapped up to meet his "You have to tell him. He will forgive you. I forgive you" There was nothing to forgive, but if hearing it helped. "I'm not going anywhere. No matter what happens, you're not alone. Even if this is as good as it is ever going to get, I won't leave until you make me." 

He held her gaze, hoping she would see the truth of his words. "You're sure?"

He stood and held his hand down to her "I'm sure, will you come to the kitchen with me?" 

She took his hand and stood unsteadily "Yes...why?"

"For water and some food. Or else you're going to feel even worse in a few hours." 

"Oh, yes. Quite right." 

He helped her get her blouse on, only having to keep her from falling twice. 

He got her to drink a glass of water and eat a piece of toast before settling her on the couch to sleep it off. 

She was curled up on her side just watching him for a moment "Ardeth, will you talk to Rick? Please. He deserves to know it's not his fault. I just. I can't say it. But he needs to know...and I'm a coward." Her voice tapered off, and her eyes had drifted closed before he could respond. 

He tucked the blanket around her shoulders and sighed. Answering even though she wasn't awake to hear him "Yes, I will tell him. And how one so brave could think herself a coward will forever be a mystery to me."


	4. You Can't Keep Running

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rick has a plan to help Evie, with Ardeth's help. As always, it gets dark. This and the next chapter discuss torture and trauma.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to my Beta readers and Hyperborean for your input and critiques!

The next day Rick led Evie to the library and settled her in one of the chairs. He knelt in front of her and took her hands in his "We're going to clear the air Evie. Ardeth filled me in on what you told him."

She flushed and tried to pull her hands away "Rick, I…."

He held onto her hands and shushed her. "Evie, stop, you're going to listen to me right now. I love you and nothing you could do will ever change that." Rick turned her hands over so her wrists were facing up then met her eyes. "You can't keep hiding. Not from me, not about this. I have loved everything about you since the day we met, and I will love everything about you until the day I die. That includes every scar, every hurt, every fear...everything. I need you to share it with me. Because we can't survive with this distance between us."

"I don't know if I can. There's so much and I feel like I can't stop hurting you. I don't want to put that on you." 

Her voice was so small. Almost weak, and it made something dark and wild inside of him flare up; there was nothing small or weak about Evelyn Carnahan O'Connell. 

He took a deep breath, putting it all away. "Look, let's just start here." He took her leg and lifted her bare foot off the floor, tracing his thumbs along the scar encircling her ankle "What made this one?"

"Rope"

"You were tied up?"

She nodded, her body trembling. "I tried to escape."

Of course she did. His beautiful, brave wife. He raised her foot, pushed her skirt up to her knee and pressed a soft kiss to the scar, doing the same with the other ankle. She jerked a little, but didn't pull away. 

"What about these?" He slid his fingers along the half dozen parallel marks across her right calf. There were none on her left.

She started shaking more noticeably. "A switch."

He leaned in and brushed kisses on each one. 

"R-Rick...I don't think I can do this. I feel..f-f-feel like I'm going to break apart. I can barely hold m-m-myself together to begin with"

He set her leg back on the ground and readjusted her skirt. "Do you want to try again tomorrow? We can stop, but we're going to talk about all of them, even if it's just one or two a day."

She shook her head "No, I think I would dread it too much."

"Okay, is there anything that might make this easier for you?"

She looked at him hesitantly "Ardeth?"

He squeezed her knee and stood "I'll go get him."

"I'm sorry." She grabbed his hand and looked up at him. "I love you Rick, so much it hurts sometimes. I'm not trying to replace you with him. He was just...he was there. I could survive if it meant protecting him, if it meant giving you a better chance when you got there."

He squeezed her hand "You don't have to apologize. You and I both love him; he and I both love you. It will be alright."

"Oh, well I suppose that's fine then."

He found Ardeth reading a small leather bound book in front of the fire. "She's asking for you to be there too"

Ardeth tucked the book into his robes and stood. He and Rick had already spoken at length about the plan to help Evie. 

"Are you sure about this O'Connell?"

Rick rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Yes. I trusted you each time to help me get her back, and you did. This isn't any different." He started towards the library, Ardeth followed and caught up within a few steps.

"And how I feel about her? I meant what I said when we spoke earlier. I love her in ways that are inappropriate for a man who is not her husband."

"I know you do, and me?"

"I love you, I meant it when I said that too."

"Then it's really simple. I've never been one to turn down a good time, and I have a feeling once we've helped sufficiently piece one other back together, that having all three of us here is going to be a very good time. No matter what that relationship looks like."

"Then it seems none of us is truly lost."

"Well, it is I whom you seek after all." Rick gave him a lopsided grin and knocked on the library door.


	5. Trust

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More comes to light about Evie's time as a captive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heads up, references to torture and rape. This one is on the heavy side, even for this fic, but there should be more than enough comfort to outweigh the hurt. 
> 
> The poem Ardeth is reading is Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet. It's not an ancient collection, but it is beautiful. 
> 
> https://bahaiteachings.org/who-inspired-gibrans-the-prophet/
> 
> Thank you to my Betas and Hyperborean for the suggestions!

Evelyn stood with her back against Ardeth's chest, wrapped in his arms. She settled against him and closed her eyes. 

Rick's hand was gentle against her leg, its warmth soothing through the soft fabric of her skirt. "Are you ready to try again?"

She took a deep breath and nodded "Yes."

Rick slid her skirt up, baring her right leg and the line of parallel round marks running up the outside of her thigh. He circled her leg with both his hands, touching the marks with his thumbs. "These?"

"Bone needles. He couldn't…" she paused trying to find the words "perform unless I was screaming." 

She started trembling and Rick let her skirt fall back into place, gently rubbing her thigh through the thick cotton.

Ardeth's arms tightened around her and whispered soft encouragement in her ear. She could feel his beard brushing against her hair as he spoke; sometimes in Arabic, sometimes in English, and still others in Ancient Egyptian. 

When she finally felt steady enough she looked down at Rick "Go on, please."

Rick shifted her skirt again and touched the small scattered marks on her inner thigh. "Here?"

She shook her head and answered hoarsely "I don't remember. It was…" She swallowed and turned her face against Ardeth's neck "It was bad."

Rick let her skirt fall and rubbed his hands up and down the outsides of her legs. "Do you want to take another break?" 

She considered it for a moment "No, keep going." 

He repeated the same process with her other leg. She let herself relax into the feel of Rick's hands on her skin. The warmth of Ardeth's arms around her. It would be okay. Rick would make everything alright and Ardeth would keep her safe. 

She felt her skirt fall back into place, and then Rick was standing in front of her touching her face."I think I'm the one who needs a break this time."

The three of them relocated to the worn couch with Evie leaning back against Ardeth's side and her legs over Rick's lap. 

She looked up at the dark haired man "What's in your robes?"

She brightened a little when he pulled out the small book. "Will you read some of it to us? I've always been rubbish at reading Arabic and I've heard the poetry is truly wonderful."

He left his arm draped around her and held the book in his other hand, reading in a low voice that made her feel boneless. 

<...But let there be spaces in your togetherness, and

Let the winds of the heavens dance between you…>

Eventually, Rick brought them all back to reality "Are you ready to keep going?"

She swallowed and whispered "Yes." Her hands went to undo the buttons on her blouse, but they were shaking so badly she couldn't keep ahold of them.

Rick reached over and lifted her hands away from her shirt and positioned them beside her head, hands held in Ardeth's "Don't worry, I'll handle that."

He undid the buttons and slid the shirt down her sides, her grip tightened on Ardeth's hands as she fought to not cover herself. 

His hand settled over the scar from Anck-Su-Namun before sliding up her ribcage and stopping over a cluster of raised silver welts "These?"

"A whip." Her voice came out as a croak. 

He moved his other hand up her side to a similar set of scars that also marked her breast. "The same as the ones over here?"

"Yes."

Rick worked methodically through the scars on her chest and stomach. She shifted to her knees, and leaned against Ardeth, her face pressed against his neck. 

Evie tensed when Rick slid her blouse off her shoulders and laid it across the back of the sofa. He leaned in and whispered to her " We're almost done. You're doing so well and I'm so proud of you Evie."

She whimpered and pressed tighter against Ardeth, somehow flustered by the praise. Which made absolutely no sense, Rick was never shy about telling her why he loved her. 

The thought steadied her and she shifted so he could hear her "We can keep going." 

It didn't take long to cover the scars on her back. Long before she thought they would be done, Rick was helping to slide her shirt on, and Ardeth did up the buttons. 

"Do you want to take another break? Or do you want to keep going?"

"Keep going. I don't know if I can start again."

Ardeth pulled her onto his lap and held her against his chest, his arms over hers. "We are almost finished, I will not let anything happen to you." 

She nodded and shifted until she was comfortable then bent her arms at the elbow, her forearms facing up. 

Rick slid the fabric up her arms and went through all of the raised silver marks before gently touching the flat, duller lines that ran the length of her forearm. "These are the last ones Evie."

She shook her head, "I can't."

Ardeth whispered to her "You can Evelyn, you survived that hell, you destroyed the Creature. You are strong enough for this."

She closed her eyes when he kissed the marks on her arms. "He's right Evie. I love you, and that's not going to change. How about just one word? What made the wounds?"

It took her several tries, but she managed to choke out "Pottery."

Ardeth was still whispering encouragement and endearments in her ear when Rick asked his next question. "I love you Evie; more than anything." He kissed the marks again. "Who used the pottery?"

"Me."

"Why?"

"Coward."

"No." Both Rick and Ardeth replied simultaneously, and in very near the same tone of voice.

"Evie, that's not true, when did you decide it was even an option?"

She shook her head. "It doesn't matter. I still broke my promise to you Rick."

"And as the one you made the promise to, it matters. Tell me, Evie."

"When I knew he was using me to capture you and Ardeth."

Rick moved to sit on the couch next to Ardeth and drew Evie onto his lap. 

She paused a moment, knowing the point he was trying to make but "I still feel like a coward."

"Then you're going to just have to trust me that you're not, until you believe it yourself."

Ardeth readjusted her legs on his lap and pulled a blanket over them. "Trust us, Evelyn, until you can trust it yourself."


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Evie and Ardeth talk about something that's still bothering him and there is fluff.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to my beta readers and Hyperborean for the help and feedback!

Ardeth woke up to a soft touch on the side of his face, and opened his eyes to a concerned Evelyn.

"It sounded like you were having a nightmare. Are you alright?" Her voice was barely a whisper. 

"Yes, just unsettled." His voice was equally soft. 

"Do you want to talk about it?"

For a moment he thought about keeping it to himself, but that tactic hadn't worked very well for any of them. "It was about the desert. About what I did...and didn't do. Part of me doesn't believe you can forgive me."

"Ardeth, there's nothing to forgive. You were under his control and didn't have a choice."

"That doesn't change the fact that I was who he used to hurt you. I couldn't stop, and I still don't quite believe you could want me here. Even if you do believe it wasn't my fault."

"First of all." Her voice was quiet, but sharp. "You were just as hurt by that as I was. If you truly believe you're responsible for hurting me, you have to accept I'm responsible for hurting you. Because you had even less control over it than I did."

He turned his head to kiss her palm. "It's not the same. I could see the pain on your face, I didn't get hurt."

She slid her hand down his chest and pressed her palm firmly over his heart. "Didn't you? I saw your face too, Medjai."

His eyes widened slightly. There was something wild and unknowable in her gaze when she said the word; as though she bestowed the title on him the same way she had all those lifetimes ago. 

Something deep inside him uncoiled and was replaced by an intense sense of rightness. There were still sharp edges, and this likely wouldn't be his last nightmare, but for the first time he believed he would truly recover. 

His chest hurt for a moment with how much he loved her, loved both of them. They were his home from now on. They probably always had been, but none of them realized it until now. 

He covered her hand on his chest with his own and reached out with his free arm to pull her closer. "I am going to kiss you Evelyn O'Connell."

"Call me Evie." She whispered with a grin just before their lips met. 

He closed his eyes, melting into the sensation, and deepened the kiss when her lips parted for him.

As the kiss slowly tapered off he rolled to his back and tucked her against his chest, basking in the contentment of having her in his arms. 

He closed his eyes a little tighter when Rick chuckled and shifted next to him. 

Logically he knew kissing Evie was 100% allowed. But there was a small part of him waiting for Rick to react badly at waking up to his wife kissing another man. 

When he finally opened his eyes he was met with Rick's lopsided grin and a tender look on his face.

The part of him that had been honed in the desert for survival and was always just a little bit on edge relaxed and sank into the recesses of his mind. 

He reached over and placed his hand against Ardeth's cheek, brushing a calloused thumb against his beard. 

His mouth went dry, and he traced his hand along Rick's arm to rest on the back of his neck. "Are you going to come down here so I can kiss you too or not?" 

It was tentative for a moment as they learned the shape of each other's lips, it was different than kissing Evelyn, but felt just as right.

They talked into the early hours of the morning, and probably would have spoken even longer if Evelyn hadn't abruptly announced he and Rick should explore a sexual relationship separate from her until she was ready to be intimate again. 

It was then that Rick declared he was entirely too tired, and too sober, for that particular conversation and they should all just try and go back to sleep. 

After a minute of bickering Evie looked upatt Ardeth "Well, what do you think? Talk now, or later?"

"Later." He really just wanted to enjoy having them cuddled up on either side of him. 

Evie huffed "Oh, alright. I suppose I'm out voted," and curled in closer, her arm draped across his chest. 

Rick mirrored her position on his other side, except he was quite a bit larger and ended up enveloping both of them under his arm. 

It was the most peaceful rest he'd had in a very, very long time.


	7. Behind the Woodshed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's the long awaited smut.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to my beta readers and Hyperborean for helping me polish this!

Rick left his axe lodged in the stump in front of him and ran his sleeve across his brow. The mornings were still cool, and it never really got hot in England the way it did in Egypt, but it was nearing midday and he had managed to work up a good sweat over the past couple of hours.

It had been a couple of months since the three of them had hashed out the sexual side of whatever the three of them were doing together, and he and Ardeth had been dancing around each other ever since. Evie had more than given them her blessing because as she put it 'I don't know when, or even if, I'll be ready for sex and there's no reason the two of you shouldn't enjoy each other in the interim.'

And Rick wanted to, he really, really, wanted to. Hell, he'd been out here chopping wood that really didn't need to be chopped because he'd woken up pressed against Ardeth hard as a rock. 

And he'd panicked. He couldn't quite seem to get past whatever was holding him back from taking their physical relationship beyond the touches and kissing that had become second nature between the three of them since that night.

He turned at the sound of the door to see Ardeth striding towards him, sunlight catching on the intricate silver embroidery that flowed over the Medjai's black robes. 

Great, just great. He wasn't sure if the man had awful or perfect timing. Ardeth stopped entirely too close and offered him a glass of water before he had the chance to think about the question anymore. 

He tried to convince himself his suddenly dry mouth was from chopping wood and not the edge of heat in the other man's dark eyes when their fingers touched. He took a long sip and set the glass down near the axe.

Heat crept through his face and his gut clenched when Ardeth reached over and brushed his fingers slowly over his already burning cheek. "We should get you out of the sun my friend, you are looking flushed."

Rick turned his head just enough to kiss Ardeth's hand without breaking his gaze. "Whatever you want." His voice was rough. 

The hand on his cheek slid behind his neck and pulled him in for a searing kiss. He groaned into the kiss and buried one hand in Ardeth's hair; the other wrapping around his waist and pulling him in tightly.

They stumbled towards the shade until his back pressed against the rough bark of a tree. Ardeth had untucked his shirt, and Rick tensed, groaning into his mouth as calloused hands explored and caressed his sweat slicked skin. 

Rick kissed and nipped down Ardeth's neck, one hand buried in his salt and pepper hair, working the other through his robes and down his pants. 

Ardeth's breath hitched and his hips jerked when Rick wrapped his hand around his hard cock, lightly stroking velvet skin. With a groan, Rick found Ardeth's lips, his heart hammering in his chest. 

They fell to their knees as one and then he lost track of whose hands were where as they explored one another's bodies, pulling and tugging at clothing to expose more skin to sunlight and nipping kisses. 

His whole body tightened when Ardeth's teeth scraped along his collar bone, he -wanted- so many things at once he didn't know where to start. Thankfully, he was granted a reprieve from trying to figure it out when Ardeth pulled back enough to produce a bottle of lube from somewhere in the pile of clothes and asked with a raised eyebrow "Anything I want?"

A lazy self-satisfied grin spread across his face, his hands sliding down to rest on Ardeth's hips, tugging at the drawstring of his pants. "If you want to fuck my ass I wish you'd hurry up before I lose my mind." 

Ardeth pushed him back onto the grass and he very ungracefully fumbled with his belt and the buttons on his jeans. He got them down past his hips before flipping over at Ardeth's urging. 

He groaned and lifted his hips at the gentle stretch of his ass as Ardeth's slick finger slid inside him. He turned his head to the side, flushing uncharacteristically at the heat he saw in the Medjai's gaze, shifting impatiently as a second finger joined the first. 

Ardeth leaned over him, his chest pressing into Rick's back and kissed the side of his neck, the scratch of his beard sending sparks down to his toes. "Ready?"

He raised himself up on his elbow and pulled Ardeth down for a searing kiss "Yes."

He closed his eyes, moaning his appreciation as Ardeth replaced his fingers with his cock, sliding deep inside his ass with a single, slow, rolling thrust of his hips. 

They were both still for a moment, then with steady, rocking thrusts Ardeth built to a driving rhythm that had Rick writhing underneath him, digging his fingers into the dirt, his breathing ragged. 

After one particularly rough thrust made him struggle and let out a gasping yell, Ardeth stilled inside him and stroked his fingers up and down his spine "Are you okay?"

Rick reached back and found Ardeth's hand, squeezing roughly "Yes. Fuck. Do that again...please." he rasped, working his hips back, desperate for more. 

He didn't have to wait long. Ardeth switched his grip to pin Rick's hand behind his back and pulled almost all the way out before forcefully burying his cock to the hilt. "Like that?"

The rushing in his ears made it hard to understand for a moment, and his delayed "Yes. Fuck. Please." followed several seconds of desperately grinding back against Ardeth's hips. 

His brain completely shut off Ardeth picked up a driving rhythm that had Rick seeing stars; it didn't take long for him to cum against the ground, his whole body tensing, each thrust dragging a ragged cry from his lips.

A few moments later Ardeth followed him, cock pulsing as he came, buried inside Rick. 

Ardeth collapsed next to him and they both lay tangled in each other in the shade of the large tree, sunlight filtering down through the leaves making shifting patterns on hot, damp skin. 

Eventually Rick reached out to brush his thumb over Ardeth's lips. "Want to go inside so I can thank you for that properly?"

He was pretty sure the languid kiss he got in reply was a "Yes."


	8. The Desert

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What happened to Evie in the desert.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a flashback to what happened to Evie in the desert. It gets a bit graphic, but it can be skipped without missing important plot details.

Evelyn dug her fingers into the sand, pulling it away from the wall in what amounted to her cell. The top of what was originally a second or third story window slowly became visible. The sand that had reclaimed the ruins meant that most of the building was buried. But luckily for her, it also meant the room wasn't as secure as her captors thought. 

The light was blinding and it took several seconds for her eyes to adjust. Finally, she could make out several jeeps sitting about 50 yards away across bare sand. There didn't appear to be anyone guarding them. 

It was midday, and oppressively hot. Hopefully, most everyone would be seeking some sort of reprieve from the sun and she would be able to get a bit of a head start before they realized she was missing. 

She wasn't even sure who had kidnapped her, it certainly wasn't the first time. She and Rick had spent a good part of the war as MI6 operatives; their 'invitation' involved being snatched off the street, separated, and interrogated. 

Apparently, they were unprepared for her husband to be so well armed. She didn't know exactly how much damage Rick had done to the building when he escaped to find her, but the next day there was an article about a thwarted IRA attack in London. At least she could be relatively sure she would only have run of the mill humans to contend with. Imhotep and his cult were gone and buried with Ahm Shere. 

But, she had believed that once before and been wrong. She closed her eyes and took a deep calming breath to steady herself. Just because it was a possibility didn't make it likely. The plan was the same either way. She had to escape and get word to Rick or Ardeth that she was safe. 

Finally there was enough room for her to squeeze through. It had been a short drive from Cairo to wherever she was now, and if she could get to one of those Jeeps she was certain she could find her way back to the city. 

A hand wrapped around her ankle as she was about to shimmy her hips through the hole. She kicked at the hand holding her, felt a satisfying crunch and his grip loosened enough for her to scramble free of the window. 

Just as she got her feet under her, she was thrown back to the sand by her hair. When she finally got a clear look at her captor all of her hope evaporated. 

Imhotep. His cruel smile shot ice down her spine.

"You!" She scrambled to her feet, and backed away from him until she hit the worn wall of the ruin. 

He stalked across the hot sand and pinned her against the wall by her neck.

__

_His smile was cruel and the look in his eyes filled her with revulsion._

_She couldn't look away and panic rose inside her for the first time as he leaned in and kissed her cruelly, his lips bruising hers, his tongue invading her mouth._

_Her scream of indignation was muffled, and she reflexively bit down on his tongue. He pulled away with a curse and backhanded her across the face. An explosion of white hot pain radiated through her skull and blood filled her mouth._

_She fought for a moment, but suddenly she couldn't move. She could only watch in horror when he ripped her clothes off, lifted her knees and pressed between them._

_Revulsion twisted inside of her and she had to grit her teeth to keep from screaming. Mercifully, he didn't last long and when he stepped back she collapsed, retching in the hot sand._

_His contempt for her was plain in his voice._

_She glared at him, feverishly weighing her options. Rick's voice echoed in her head, 'If you can escape, escape, Evelyn. But if you can't, just hang on until I get there.' He had insisted on survival lessons when they were first married, and they had taught Alex the same when he was old enough to understand._

_It wasn't worth fighting, it wouldn't do any good and she couldn't afford to end up incapacitated with sunstroke. She had no doubt he would follow through with his threat, so she swallowed her pride and squeezed back through the window._

_All she had to do was survive._

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

_Surviving was harder than she anticipated. It had barely been 12 hours since her escape attempt, but it may as well have been 12 years. It was the middle of the night now and no matter how tightly she curled in on herself she couldn't get warm,_

_Everything hurt and she still had the taste of blood - and other things - in her mouth. Dying hadn't been as bad as this. Maybe dying wasn't so horrible after all. At least the pain would stop._

_NO! She scolded herself. Thinking like that wouldn't do her any good. Rick was coming, possibly Ardeth, and they would rescue her. She HAD to survive._

_There were voices coming from outside the grate covering the entrance to the room. The voices were too soft for her to hear, so she tentatively slid over the rough sand to get as close as she could to the metal without being seen._

_'...Need them alive... she's the only leverage to make them take the collar…' then the voices faded as they continued past the opening._

_She crawled back to the corner of her cell, barely stifling a yell when something in the sand cut her arm. She pressed her hand over the wound for a moment before slowly pulling it away; an awful idea forming in her head. Imhotep wanted Rick and Ardeth to help him destroy the Medjai, then probably destroy the world._

_Another cramping pain gripped her stomach and she bit her fist to keep from screaming. It aroused him, and she didn't want them to know she was awake. He left her alone when she went unconscious._

_The pain finally abated and she took several deep breaths. If she was dead, there would be no way to control Rick or Ardeth._

_The thought steadied her and she pulled the shard of pottery from the sand and dug the tip into the skin of her forearm._

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

_"NO! DON'T…" her cry to warn Ardeth not to accept the deal to save her was cut off by a guard's hand over her mouth. She knew it was pointless, but she struggled anyways, desperate to tell him to run. Escape. Get away. Her life wasn't worth the risk of Imhotep's plan succeeding. She had been found before she could bleed out and he had healed the wounds from the pottery shard, but not any of the others._

_When the intricate golden collar snapped closed she felt more than saw the magic lock it in place. There would be no cutting it off or picking the lock._

_Her knees gave out and the guard let her sink to the ground. She kept her head lowered so her hair hid her face. Her head felt like it was full of cotton and nails, but she forced herself to think. Rick was still coming._

_There was no doubt in her mind Ardeth would endure much the same torture as she had if the sick lust on Imhotep's face was any indication. They stood a better chance of escaping if both of them weren't incapacitated when Rick got to the camp. She had to keep his attention on her._

_Fortunately, or unfortunately she didn't have to try very hard._

_She started trembling when he slid his arms under her knees and shoulders to lift her, but she didn't pull away._

_Ardeth made a distressed sound and grabbed her hair. She couldn't help her squeal when he dragged her across the room and let go of her at Imhotep's feet._

_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_

_It was well past dawn when Imhotep strode into the cell holding them. He crouched near her and pushed her matted hair from her face. She hated that she cringed and the flash of victory in his eyes when she did._

_She wanted to say more. But her head still felt like it was full of cotton and she couldn't think. What little energy she had, she focused on the only three things that mattered right now: survive, keep Ardeth safe, wait for Rick._

_he stood and faced Ardeth_

_Terror shot through her. No, Ardeth would not go through what she had. The accompanying surge of adrenaline cleared her mind for just long enough. _The derision dropped from her words, even in Ancient Egyption.__

__Imhotep spun to her. The rage that poured off of him was palpable. She spat at him_ _

__He grabbed her hair and pulled her to what had once been the base of a statue._ _

_____ _

___She didn't bother replying, just struggled onto the block of marble and to her knees. She settled into as comfortable a position as possible and closed her eyes. The adrenalin was wearing off and the momentary clarity and energy were gone._ _ _

___with a flourish he stormed out of the room._ _ _

___Evelyn looked over to Ardeth "Don't worry, I'll be okay. " She bowed her head and closed her eyes again._ _ _

___At first she tried to keep her mind busy to distract herself, but she couldn't focus on anything complex enough to do the trick. Panic rose inside of her, if she couldn't find a way to compartmentalize, she was doomed._ _ _

___Her racing heart slowed considerably when Ardeth's soft voice reached her._ _ _

___"Horus whose left eye is the sun, whose right shines as the moon,  
Yours is the courage to seek out strife, to war with the wicked who would corrupt the work of Ma’at.  
Yours is the nerve to face what may come, whatever the chances, whatever the risk. Yours is the will to persevere through any misfortune, any restraint.  
Yours is the heart to fight the good battle,  
to struggle and strive and to succeed."_ _ _

___It was the prayer to Horus the Elder, but he had skipped several lines. She struggled to understand why, she knew for a fact Ardeth knew the entirety of the prayer. He had recited it with her when they were searching for Alex._ _ _

___He repeated the prayer, skipping the same lines._ _ _

___He wasn't just praying, he was talking to her without talking to her. She turned her head just enough to catch his gaze and mouthed the words "Thank you."_ _ _

___He started through the lines a third time and she closed her eyes, hanging onto his words like a lifeline. Everything distilled down to one thought. "Stay still." There wasn't room for anything else. Just his voice, and pain._ _ _

___Already abused muscles screamed at being forced to keep her upright. Her wounds were becoming infected and flies had swarmed to them. She ignored the disgust of them crawling on her. She couldn't move to shake them free anyways._ _ _

___She rode out the waves of agony, pulling it into her bones. If she started crying or letting any of it out she would break and Ardeth would be tortured._ _ _

___As the midday heat peaked, she was begging herself not to give up, her vision was going dark and if she lost consciousness she'd fall. A single word passed her cracked lips "Please…"_ _ _

___Something inside of her snapped and suddenly she wasn't in the room with Ardeth anymore. She was...in an oasis. It was misty and smelled like jasmine. "Hello? Is there anyone here?"_ _ _

___A glowing figure approached from her right and took her hand. "Come child, don't worry, your body remains where it was. Upright and still." The glow pulled into the form until a brown haired woman in a simple tunic and pants stood at her side._ _ _

___She was led to the pool, and they both sat with their feet in the cool water. "What happened? Where am I? Who are you?"_ _ _

___The woman smiled, her laugh lines deepening. "You are-" there was a pause as she seemed to search for the appropriate word "In the ether, the spirit realm if you will. I am Hale, the goddess of last chances. You prayed to me and I brought you here. I'll send you back when the time is right."_ _ _

___"But...I didn't pray to you, I don't even know what pantheon you belong to, or even that you existed." She flushed realizing she'd just told a goddess she had been forgotten. Stupid, so stupid, she would never forgive herself if she ruined whatever blessing this was. If it actually was a blessing at all._ _ _

___To her relief Hale just laughed "Astute as always Evelyn. I'm an anomaly, when someone is on their last breath and sends a plea for strength into the ether, even just 'please', I am called. Normally I can't interfere so directly, but you are already linked to the spirit realm due to being resurrected. So, I can be a little more involved."_ _ _

___Evelyn stared at her, speechless._ _ _

___Hale laughed again and offered her a plate with fruit and bread. "Eat, drink. It will help restore your strength."_ _ _

___She took the plate and devoured the food silently. When she finished she sipped from a glass of water that never seemed to empty._ _ _

___"What will happen when you send me back?"_ _ _

___"You'll continue on from where you were. I can't change your physical circumstances. Only keep your consciousness safe here. Why do you ask?" There was an expectant look on her face._ _ _

___Evelyn started to answer and then closed her mouth, turning the question over in her head. There was an important subtext to her words._ _ _

___She met Hale's gaze and told the truth "That won't make him safe. The only reason Imhotep hasn't gone back on his deal with me is because he wants to hurt me by making Ardeth's torture my fault. But even if I succeed, we're right back where we were and both of us will be in trouble."_ _ _

___The goddesses grin got wider "What do you want Evelyn? What was the last chance you prayed to me for? Show me."_ _ _

___She took a deep breath and pulled images and feelings from her memory. From her Hopes. Safe. Her and Rick and Ardeth Safe. Safe and together._ _ _

___Hale's gaze softened until it appeared she was staring at something miles in the distance. "That is a dangerous path. Your men will need to move past what will happen here. If they don't, you will die. It is the price of the power I will share with you for this. Do you trust them that much?"_ _ _

___"I love them that much."_ _ _

___"Good. I can tell you only this. When you know the words I will supply the power to turn him to dust and scatter him to the four winds. It will never be possible for him to be reformed and resurrected."_ _ _

___"The words?"_ _ _

___"I can't tell you what they are. But you will know when the time is right. You and yours are beloved of the chaos."_ _ _

___The misty oasis disappeared and she was back in the cell on her knees. Her senses were temporarily overwhelmed by the return of the heat and the pain._ _ _

___She forced her eyes open, breathing through the shock of rejoining her body. A moment later Imhotep stormed in. He hadn't expected her to succeed._ _ _

___She managed to not flinch when he leaned close to her_ _ _

___Her heart hammered in her chest, sudden despair flooded her heart. She had been counting on Rick rescuing them, he still might, but the odds against them were climbing._ _ _

___She had to remember those words._ _ _

___~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_ _ _

___ _

___The sand was still hot under her back as the sun dropped past the horizon. She hadn't figured out the words in time and she doubted she would. Everything was pain and she had failed. Her vision was fuzzy and she could hear voices, one smug, one angry. Rick. He was screaming her name, his voice sounded like it was coming from a great distance, then suddenly loud and too close._ _ _

___Her head lolled to the side she thought his voice was coming from and tried to focus. He was tied to a tent pole, struggling and yelling for her frantically._ _ _

___Imhotep's voice again, but she couldn't understand what he was saying. It didn't matter. It wouldn't be good._ _ _

___Something in Rick's voice changed and she tried to focus. Ardeth was walking towards Rick. That was good, he would help. Except he wasn't himself. Imhotep was still in control._ _ _

___She swallowed, trying desperately to wet her mouth. The rushing in her ears intensified and suddenly everything and everyone seemed very far away._ _ _

___The spell she had used to put him back in his grave the first time floated through her mind. Would it even work without the book?_ _ _

___It didn't matter, she decided groggily, she had nothing else. She licked her cracked lips ineffectively and spoke. Her voice was hoarse and so quiet even she could barely hear herself._ _ _

___As the last words fell from her lips...nothing happened. She could have screamed in frustration and despair._ _ _

___Then the night went still. No breeze, no animal noises, not even the shifting of the sand._ _ _

___An electric current, painful, but not particularly unpleasant coalesced inside of her. She struggled to her feet. The electric energy felt like it was racing through her veins; building on itself exponentially._ _ _

___The power was for one purpose, and it filled her entire consciousness. She stalked towards Imhotep, her wrath fueled the magic further and it started radiating out from her in iridescent spirals._ _ _

___He raised his arms, trying to draw his power, but nothing happened. She grinned, her blood stained teeth an eerie contrast to her pale, bruised face. Euphoria from the power concentrating inside of her left her feeling ancient and wild, connected to some forgotten primal part of the world._ _ _

___She batted his arm away almost as an aside when she reached him. The panic and disbelief on his face was like a balm to her soul when she grabbed him by the neck and raised him off the sand effortlessly._ _ _

___She stared him in the eyes and let go of all the power she had been gifted and a blinding light burst from within her._ _ _

___To her momentarily enhanced vision, him disintegrating appeared to happen in slow motion and a gust of wind scattered his ashes into the infinite sands._ _ _

___She turned and saw the guards rushing towards them, she made a sweeping motion with her arm and they fell to the ground as though their legs were suddenly pulled from underneath them._ _ _

___She turned again to face Rick and Ardeth. They were both staring at her incredulously. She snapped her fingers and with the last of the borrowed power destroyed the collar around Ardeth's neck._ _ _

___He held his hand to his throat briefly, his eyes wide, fear and relief filling his face. Then he drew his sword and cut the ropes that secured Rick to the pole._ _ _

___The last thing she saw before crumpling to the ground was Rick running towards her, screaming her name._ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter has been posted simultaneously for a palate cleanser.


	9. Morning Trysts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a morning in bed. Evelyn enjoys making Rick squirm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to my beta readers and Hyperborean for the help!

Evelyn woke up wrapped in Rick's arms; if it weren't one of her favorite places she would have been upset at being woken in the middle of such a spectacularly erotic dream. She nuzzled his neck, content to rest against his broad chest and replay the dream in her head. 

It wasn't the first time over the summer that she'd woken up aroused from a dream involving some combination of the three of them. The first time she'd just gotten out of bed and hidden in the library reshelving books until she'd calmed down. Of course Rick and Ardeth had both wanted to know why she'd locked herself away instead of joining them for breakfast. 

She wasn't innocent by any means, but something about having to explain her dream was about them eating berries and cream off of her body left her flushed and unable to look either of them in the eye.

The lopsided grin she loved so much spread across Rick's face and he raised his eyebrows suggestively as he wondered out loud what type of cream they had been using. Ardeth laughed, but the look in his eyes was just on the soft side of predatory and her stomach clenched in response. 

Then she explained she'd run because she would feel bad if she initiated some sort of physical intimacy and then had to stop and leave one or both of them aroused without relief. 

In no uncertain terms they both informed her that was an unacceptable reason to pull away because 'Blue balls never hurt anyone.'

While that was true, she still couldn't quite shake the guilt. They had finally come to a compromise where she wouldn't feel bad about testing her boundaries with them, and they wouldn't feel bad about going to each other for relief. 

The second time she had spent an hour in the bath relearning how it felt to be in her own skin. She hadn't quite climaxed. But she wasn't repulsed by touching herself, and the men had excused themselves to the guest bedroom, so she counted that as a good thing. 

Then she woke up in between them, all of them aroused. They'd spent the morning touching her and each other over their pajamas until it was too intense for her to handle and she retired to take a bath. But she had asked them to stay in the master bedroom, and she left the door open. That time she did climax when Rick swore in that hoarse voice that meant his legs wouldn't work right for a while. 

The last time she had cum from the gentle strokes of Rick's talented fingers while Ardeth held her. 

This time she wanted to get reacquainted with his body. Ever since their first time together at Fort Brydon she had revelled in his strength and size, taking any opportunity she could to touch him, kiss him, tease him until he made delightful gasps and groans. 

She felt him smile against her hair when she slid her hand under the T-shirt he wore to bed and gently scraped her fingers through his chest hair. She drew her hand down his chest and stomach; when she reached the drawstring of his pants he caught her wrist gently. 

"Evie, you don't have to…"

"I know." She tilted her head and nipped at his earlobe "I want to."

He let go of her wrist and she slipped her hand under the waistband to gently stroke his cock. 

Ardeth shifted next to them and reached over to lightly touch her shoulder. She looked over Rick's chest at him and he raised his eyebrow in question. 

She thought for a moment, worrying her bottom lip and then nodded. Ardeth grinned and leaned over Rick's shoulder to kiss the tip her nose quickly. 

Rick opened his eyes, brows drawn in brief confusion when Evie scooted away from him, but relaxed when he realized it was just so Ardeth could recline behind him on an unnaturally large number of pillows. 

Once Rick was settled against Ardeth's chest, wrapped in a bear hug, Evie knelt between his legs and took her time sliding the soft cotton of his shirt over his belly and chest, delighting in touching him. 

When she pressed open mouthed kisses to his belly he tensed underneath her and groaned. She glanced up and grinned against his skin, his head was pressed back against Ardeth's shoulder, eyes closed and face flushed. 

Ardeth winked at her before lowering his head to whisper something in Rick's ear she couldn't quite catch. Whatever it was made him twitch, so she approved. 

She slid her hands down his hips and legs, shifting lower on the bed to lay between his thighs. He lifted his hips off the bed for her when she untied the drawstring to his pants and tugged them down. 

How had she forgotten how responsive he was under her hands and mouth? She nipped at his inner thigh and slid his not quite firm cock into her mouth. When he still wasn't erect after several minutes she had to make a concentrated effort to banish the thought that he wasn't hard because of her. It helped that he certainly wasn't faking the way he struggled and jerked in Ardeth's arms. 

It wasn't the first time he hadn't gotten it up during sex, and both of them always ended up blissfully satisfied. She supposed an upside to him not getting hard was she could fit all of his cock in her mouth without having to make up the difference with her hand. 

Another wicked idea formed in her head. She gripped his thighs and sucked his cock back between her lips. After a couple of seconds she slid her tongue over the soft skin of his balls and pulled them into her mouth along with his cock and hummed softly until she couldn't hold both any longer.

Rick twisted and writhed in Ardeth's hold. His groans and rough voiced appreciation had to be one of the best things she'd ever heard while she continued to search out all of his sensitive spots with her tongue, one hand dipping between his legs to cup his balls.

She wasn't how long she lost herself in focussing all of her attention on his cock, completely lost to the thrill of pleasuring him. His voice brought her back to reality when he ground out "Fuck, Evelyn...I'm about to cum."

She pulled back just as he came with a yell, his body practically levitating out of Ardeth's arms. She kept massaging and stroking his cock until he collapsed underneath her. 

She crawled up just a little bit and slid her arms around his waist, resting her cheek against his stomach. Ardeth's legs pressed against her shoulders lightly and she lifted her head for a moment and kissed his knee before laying back against Rick. 

One of them was stroking her hair, and she closed her eyes, snuggling in closer to bask in the intimacy of the moment.


End file.
